Kenshiro
(Ken for short) is the main character of the Hokuto no Ken manga, anime and related media. He is the 64th successor of the Hokuto Shin Ken style and considered one of the greatest successors in its history. His famous catchphrase "Omae wa mo shindeiru!" (You're already dead!) is dealt to many an opponent he has killed before they know it. Origin : Kenshirō was originally an orphan from Taiseiden, Shura and a descendent of the Hokuto Sōke bloodline. He was sent to the mainland by Jukei as a baby to be adopted by Ryūken, master of Hokuto Shin Ken. Ryuken named him after his older brother Kenshirō Kasumi, since they shared the same Big Dipper-shaped birthmark on their heads. : Kenshirō watched his adoptive brothers train in the art of Hokuto Shin Ken and decided to join them in the fight to become Ryūken's successor. Despite being younger and more naive than his older brothers, Kenshirō was a keen student and ultimately earned the title of successor. Character overview : After the nuclear war and the death of Ryūken, Kenshirō left with his fiancée Yuria to find a future for themselves in the post-apocalyptic world. However, this was curtailed by Shin, a rival from the Nanto Sei Ken school, who defeated Kenshirō and engraved the trademark seven scars on his chest, before kidnapping Yuria for himself. : Kenshirō survived his wounds and spent the next year wandering the wasteland for his revenge. During this time, he learned the ruthlessness needed to survive in the war-torn age and also befriended two young orphans, Bat and Lin, who followed him on his journey. He discovered that Shin had assumed the title of King and was now leader of the eponymous King organization. After defeating Shin's best henchmen, he infiltrated his headquarters, Southern Cross, to deal with him once and for all. Driven by his new strength, Kenshirō soundly defeated Shin, but he was too late to rescue Yuria. Before his death, Shin revealed that Yuria had already committed suicide to stop his violent ambition. Refusing to die from Kenshirō's technique, Shin then leapt to his death from the palace balcony, as Yuria did before him. : Kenshirō continued to journey the wasteland, never staying at one place for long, as the curse of Hokuto only leaves chaos in its wake. He made a career of destroying those who preyed on the weak and innocent, such as the Golan, Jackal and the Fang Clan, which earned him the reputation as a savior of the people. He also discovered that his three older brothers, and fellow Hokuto Shin Ken practitioners, Jagi, Toki and Raoh had all survived the nuclear holocaust. Jagi, the second-youngest, had always hated Kenshirō and was now committing acts of carnage in his name. He was also responsible for manipulating Shin into madness. Kenshirō caught up with Jagi and delivered him a gruesome death. Kenshirō then fought against his second-oldest brother Toki, who had turned to evil after the holocaust, but this was in fact Amiba, who was posing as Toki. The real Toki was imprisoned at Cassandra by Raoh, the oldest brother, who was now under the title Ken-Oh (拳王 Fist King) and aimed to conquer the world with an iron fist. With the help of Rei and Mamiya, Kenshirō toppled Cassandra and was reunited with Toki. Toki became a valuable ally to Kenshirō and stopped his first fight with Raoh, as they were on the verge of killing one another. : Kenshirō joined forces with Shuh, leader of a rebel outfit against Souther, the Holy Emperor, and master of Nanto Hōō Ken, who enslaved young children to build his empire. Kenshirō was overcome by Souther when his pressure-point attacks had no effect on Souther's body. Close to death, Kenshirō was rescued by Shuh's young son Shiva, who sacrificed his life in the process. However, Shuh was later executed by Souther at the summit of the Holy Pyramid in retaliation. Kenshirō recovered from his wounds and this time he uncovered Souther's secret (his heart was on the opposite side and the position of his vital points were reversed). Kenshirō took pity on Souther's tragic past and killed him with a merciful technique, bringing an end to the Holy Emperor's empire. : With the final battle with Raoh drawing near, the mysterious Last Nanto General appeared to challenge Raoh's hegemony. It turned out the General's identity was actually Yuria, Kenshirō's betrothed. In truth, she had been saved by the Nanto Gosha Sei after attempting suicide at Shin's palace and her survival was kept a secret to protect her from Raoh. Kenshirō fights Raoh using the ultimate Hokuto Shin Ken technique Musō Tensei, drawing on his profound sadness and sacrifice, which causes Raoh to retreat. However, Raoh takes Yuria with him and prepares to kill her if it will imbue him with the same power. Kenshirō and Raoh finally have their last battle, with Raoh having killed Yuria to summon the power of Musō Tensei. Kenshirō's greater grasp of death and sacrifice gives him the edge over his older brother and leads him to victory. Yuria awakens after the battle, as she was actually put in a false state of death by Raoh, who was unable to kill her when he realized she was terminally ill. After Raoh's death, Kenshirō spends his next few years living in peace with Yuria, whose disease had been subdued by Raoh's power. : The later half of the manga (and the corresponding Hokuto no Ken 2 anime adaptation) sees Kenshirō joining forces with the grown-up Bat and Lin, who have now formed the Hokuto Army to oppose the corrupt Gento Kō Ken warriors. The story eventually takes Kenshirō to his birthplace, the Land of Shura, where he learns of his heritage and fights against the warlords who oppress the land: his estranged blood-brother Hyoh, and the nefarious Kaioh, Raoh's other blood-brother. The final story arcs of the manga (which were not adapted for the TV series) see Kenshirō taking Raoh's orphaned son, Ryu, under his wing before continuing on his own, where he settles the love triangle between himself, Bat and Lin. At the end, Kenshirō journeys into the desert alone to fulfil his destiny as the Hokuto Shin Ken successor. Personality : Although still emotionally repressed and stoic like most male heroes in 1980s media, Kenshirō is notable in anime culture for being a sensitive and kind-hearted man who broke the established "men don't cry" cultural stereotype. He is famous for openly lamenting, if not outright crying, for the suffering of innocents and the deaths of his few noble enemies. This trait is unfortunately downplayed in the 1980s anime adaptations, but returns to the franchise in the modern adaptations. Voice actors : Kenshirō was voiced by Akira Kamiya in the TV series and 1986 movie, Ryō Horikawa voiced the child-aged Kenshirō in flashbacks. The role of Kenshirō was recast to Takehito Koyasu in the 2003 OVA series New Fist of the North Star and then given to Kunihiro Kawamoto in the 2005 ''Fist of the North Star'' arcade game and the 2006 CG animated short film Hokuto no Ken: Legend of Heroes. In the Shin Kyūseishu Densetsu movie series, Kenshirō is voiced by Hiroshi Abe and by Eiji Hanawa as a child. For the Ten no Haō PSP game, Kenshiro is voiced by Hideo Ishikawa. He is voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi in Hokuto Musou. : English voice actors that have voiced Kenshirō includes John Vickery in the Streamline Pictures dub of the 1986 movie, Lex Lang in the Manga Entertainment dub of the TV series and Robert Kraft (voice actor) in the ADV Films dub of New Fist of the North Star. In the English version of Hokuto Musou (Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage), he is played by Kaiji Tang. Gary Daniels played Kenshiro in the 1995 live action film. Reception : In a survey conducted by the Oricon in 2007 between 1,000 people, Kenshirō ranked third place as the "strongest manga character of all time". Character Rating From Hokuto no Ken: Kyūkyoku Kaisetsusho: Seikimatsu Haō Retsuden. * Level: AAA * Power: 4 * Speed: 5 * Skills: 5 * Looks: 5 * Charisma: 5 Top 50 Secrets Translated from the 1986 magazine Hokuto no Ken Special: All About the Man. #Head Volume = 59cm #Hearing Ability = Can hear a whisper from 2km away #Height = 185cm #Eyesight = Can see the aura of a living creature in pitch black darkness #Kinetic Vision = Can intercept a quick arrow the moment it is shot #Sense of Smell = About as good as a hound #Neck Thickness = 45cm #Bust = 132cm #Arm Thickness = 48cm #Waist = 90cm #Weight = 100kg #Hip = 105cm #Reach = 187cm #Leg Thickness = 63cm #Leg Length = 92cm inseam #Shoe Size = 29cm #Body Characteristics = Index and middle fingers are forged by doing two finger handstands in order to better pierce vital points #Sense of Taste = Sensitive enough to detect poisonous food and such. #Voice = Can mimic many sounds, including animal cries. #Breathing Capacity = 8700 c.c. #Grip = Unmeasurable #Arm Strength = Unmeasurable #Walking Ability = Unmeasurable #Strength of His Back = Unmeasurable #Muscle Strength = Can repel the bullet of a small caliber gun when its strained #Leg Speed = Can move 100m in 9 seconds in steps #Fist Speed = Throws 50 punches in three seconds while performing the Hundred Crack Fist #Jump Strength = 9m a step #Punching Strength = Can split a rock that has 5m of thickness #Kick Strength = Can send a 200kg man flying 25m into the air #Diving Time = 53 minutes #Resistance to Poison = Can endure five times the dose of Potassium Cyanide required to kill an ordinary man #Fasting Resistance = Body can remain strong for three months without eating #Sleep Resistance = Can spent an entire week without sleeping #Memory Capacity = Can memorize up to 50,000 words after reading them once. #Birthdate = 1970s (20 or so years before the Nuclear War) #Blood Type = Unknown #Favorite Techniques = Can use techniques from the 108 sects of Nanto Sei Ken in addition to Hokuto Shin Ken #Favorite Weapons = Nunchaku, six-sectioned staffs, throwing knives and such #Special Skills = Has an internal biological clock with a margin of error of more than three seconds in a month #License = Initiated into the secrets of Hokuto Shin Ken passed between a single line of successors #Habit = Cracks his fingers before a fight #Talking Habit = Unknown, because he is too taciturn #Hobby = Developing new secret techniques #Favorite Food = There's not much of a room for likes and dislikes at the end of the century (or the post-apocalyptic world) #Esteemed Acquaintance = Ryuken, Raoh, Toki, and Shuh #Ideal Woman = Yuria #Favorite Clothes = Strong leather jeans that allows him to move easily #Clinical History = None #Academic Background = Well-versed in the super specialized education received from Ryuken. His specialty is in the field of Chinese medicines Trivia *Given the time period of Kenshiro's birth in 197X and the apocalypse started in 199X, his true age is up to debate among the readers. If Kenshiro was born in late 1970 and the Apocalypse started in the early 1990s Kenshiro was probably a young teenager and thus the world that Kenshiro lived as a saviour happened later. However if Kenshiro was born in the mid 1970's and the apocalypse started in mid 1990's Kenshiro was in his early 20's when he first met Lin and Bat. Gallery File:Ornl pic2.jpg File:Kenshiro_2.jpg|Kenshiro as he appears on the cover of Hokuto no Ken Vol. 1 (Jump Comics edition) File:Ornl pic12.jpg File:Seven_scars.jpg File:Kenshiro_(Toki_Gaiden).jpg|Kenshiro in Toki Gaiden Kenshiro I.JPG|Kenshiro in the first manga KenshiroIII.JPG Capturefgfd.PNG|Kenshiro in the beginning of the anime series. File:Kenshiro.PNG|Kenshiro in the anime series Hokuto no Ken 2. File:KenvsHyo.jpg|Kenshiro fights his older brother, Hyoh File:Ken (FC Hokuto no Ken 3).PNG|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken 3 for Family Computer, as depicted in regular battles. File:Large Ken (FC Hokuto no Ken 3).PNG|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken 3 for Famicom, as depicted in boss battles. File:Kenshiro (Hokuto no Ken 4).PNG|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken 4 for Family Computer. File:Kenshiro (Hokuto no Ken 5).PNG|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken 5 for Super Famicom. File:Kenshiro (Hokuto no Ken 6).PNG|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken 6 for Super Famicom (face shot). File:Kenshiro (Atomiswave).jpg|Kenshiro in Hokuto no Ken: Shinpan no Sōsōsei Kengō Retsuden (illustration) File:Hokutonokenkenshiro.jpg|Kenshiro in Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Love in Death File:Kenshirou.jpg File:Kenshiro7.gif File:Kenshiro_(Hokuto_Musou).png|Kenshiro in Hokuto Musou (game original outfit) File:Kenshiro (Hokuto Musou gensakuban).jpg|Kenshiro in Hokuto Musou (source material outfit) Capturehokuto.PNG Captures.PNG Capturespirit.PNG|a spirit that appears to help Kenshiro against Kaioh. Kenshiro.JPG|Kenshiro in the pilot manga. Capturebeard.JPG|Kenshiro with beard. vlcsnap-2010-09-11-00h51m13s169.png|Kenshiro's brief clash with Shin in the 1986 film. vlcsnap-2010-09-24-00h03m37s33.png vlcsnap-2010-09-24-00h13m47s240.png|Kenshiro unleashing his fighting aura. HoodedKenshiro.png|Kenshiro cloaked. kenshiro jibo.JPG|Ken in Jibo no Hoshi. vlcsnap-2011-09-25-22h52m19s28.png vlcsnap-2011-09-28-18h48m05s137.png vlcsnap-2011-10-31-23h30m49s65.png vlcsnap-2011-10-23-03h40m12s100.png References Category:Hokuto no Ken characters Category:Hokuto Shin Ken Denshōsha Category:Hokuto Shin Ken practitioners Category:Hokuto Sōke Category:Jibo no Hoshi characters Category:Sōkoku no Garō characters